The Phoenix (Creation and Emotion Book Two)
by Sierra Omega
Summary: *Updated 8.15.02* It is a time long after the death of Doctors Light and Wily; Zero awakens inside a sleep capsule alone and confused. What dangers await him, and will he find his old companions, or is he destined to live alone in a world of treachery?
1. Across The Ages, I still Love You

Creation and Emotion Book Two: PHOENIX __

C&E Book Two: THE PHOENIX

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Chapter One: Across the ages, still I love you…

Author's Notes: Hiyas everybody!!!! Well, I was rather disappointed in the lack of reviews I got from my dear readers… ;_; Anyway, here is the long awaited Book Two! I have at least four chapters done in a notebook, and now I just have to type it all! X_x By the way… these lyrics are from the X4 song One More Chance (great song download it if you get a chance!) and are translated at the bottom. Enjoy and review!!!!

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Umaku ienai koto ga arisugiru mainichi

Dare ka kizukenai ka itsu kimochi de

Zutto jibun tsukette 'ru da kedo da kedo

Sore ja ikenai yo ne…

Sore ja watashi ja nai sou ne…

I awoke to carnage. Littered around the room… no, no longer a room for the walls had long since fallen in… was endless piles and barren wastes of stone and metal… wires and glass… bodies… bodies… I rose to my feet to survey the extent… just barely remembering my last moments of consciousness. My mind was incredibly fuzzy… my vision blurred… I raised a hand to my face to rub the traitorous eyes… but found them stinging at the contact. Alarmed I looked down, finding with horror my gloves stained with blood… smeared with dirt… and greased with the pungent odor of oil and death.

For a moment I heard a small noise, but as I turned it vanished as quickly as it had come. A moment passed, then another… and I heard it again. Puzzled, I began picking up pieces of the wreckage, at last uncovering a fragile pale hand… a feminine hand… my efforts became hurried… but I couldn't move fast enough…

She was already dead, and seemed to have been so for some time. I fell to my knees beside her broken body, understanding now the wetness on my cheeks… But even in death she looked so sad… had I done nothing to ease her pain?

"Sierra…" I cried softly, now finding my own form wracked with sobs, disheveled hair falling to cover my anguished features.

It was your fault.

"What?!" I exclaimed. "Who's out there!?"

It was all you. You killed her.

"NO! I loved her! I would never harm her! Who are you to tell me these lies!?"

Look at yourself, you worthless pile of scrap. You killed her. Do you not see her blood on your hands?

A figure formed from the surrounding wisps of smoke remaining from long-dead fires… yet cloaked in shadow at least I saw that he was somewhat short… youthful, his voice childlike. 

"Who are you?" I demanded again, but this reaction drew only a laugh from him. I clenched my fists to my sides, leaving the corpse of my love to rush at this intruder… no! I did not kill her! With a shrill war cry I lunged… but my fists met only air. With another laugh he brought his knee up to my gut… sending me down to the treacherous grounds with a pained grunt. How could he… if I couldn't…?

You are a fool.

"Yes, a fool…" hissed a new voice… one I knew I would never forget. Suddenly at this newcomer's side appeared a figure so familiar… gods no…

"Brother…" I gasped.

He sneered at me cruelly, eyes betraying no emotion save for hate and disgust… "Yes, 'dear brother,' it is I. How could you let me die?"

"But, I didn't…"

"YOU DID!" he screamed. "THE SAME WAY YOU LET HER DIE! LOOK AT ME! LOOK AT HER!"

A second glance revealed to me the old, twisted scars over his body, assorted shrapnel still showing where they had embedded themselves in his body… I turned away… to find someone waiting for me.

I choked. No…

Sierra now stood before me, crookedly, showing where her legs and back had been broken… she was crying tears of crimson… but her once-gentle blue eyes held no sorrow, no caring for me as they had once…

"Why?" she whispered. "Why did you let us suffer? All is lost… because you failed…"

"No!" I cried out. "This can't be happening! I didn't kill anyone!"

"Oh, am I so easily forgotten?" called a third voice, and a stark black and yellow figure rose from the carnage… Bass leered as he had done so many times at me… the places where he had been fatally wounded still showing, glistening and glittering where it still bled.

They all four surrounded me, closing in on me… I found myself unable to breathe as I curled up and pulled my knees to my chest. "Stop it… stop it…" I repeated… their shadows fell over me… I held my hands outwards as if to keep them at bay… but as I stared the blood and black oil transmuted into slithering serpents of Death that surrounded me… wrapped around my arms… their teeth sunk through my armor and into my skin… searing pain…

I screamed in agony… writhing at this pain… the pain of loss… the pain of guilt… and the bite of loneliness… all a poison that now coursed in my veins.

"You were a fool, Zero," said the figure I knew not of. "And for your crimes may you live forever in pain."

I screamed again. "SIERRA!"

My scream echoed across the mists of Time and Space… the pain stayed with me the entire time…

Until I had truly awakened… inside a dark, closed-in place that made me feel like a caged animal…

'A dream…' I thought to myself in shuddering horror… 'But what if it was real…' 

I tried to move, but found that I was restrained somehow, and now computers were switching on around me as they sensed my activity. I didn't like this… I wanted out! How did I get there? Where was…

"SIERRA!" I shouted. "BLUES!" But of course I received no response… what happened? Were they really… dead? Had Wily found me? Wait a second… I heightened the sensitivity of my optical circuits to survey my body… FINDING IT COMPLETELY INTACT?!

"What the hell…?" I muttered in shock. It appeared as though I had been completely rebuilt… and all of my programming was there. Lights flickered to life in my face, and it was then that I realized that I was in a capsule much like the one I had slept in… back at the lab. How I got there… I didn't really know, nor did I care that much; my priority was getting out of there, and finding the others.

After a moment or two of struggling against my bonds they at last let me loose and I shoved open the casing. I took a deep breath of fresh air, resisting the urge to stretch. Once my eyes cleared from the sudden brightness I stopped dead, choking on the air I had inhaled. A look around told me instantly that I was in some sort of warehouse or storage area… but the origins were unfamiliar to me. Not surprising, really, considering my lack of exposure to recent architecture… though it was not the warehouse itself that astounded me the most…

…It was the robots in front of me… with weapons that I knew were probably more powerful than my own. They were of a different kind than I was programmed to know of… humanoid, like myself… and apparently had effective emotion chips like mine, for the looks on their faces mirrored my exact expression of astonishment. As my gaze fell upon them they immediately began conversing among themselves excitedly, and one of them began speaking into a wrist device that must have served as a com-link of some kind.

I was unwilling to wait for something to happen, so I started walking as to go through them, for they had surrounded me. This seemed to alarm them, and suddenly a large and imposing figure appeared in the doorway ahead. I focused my vision on a tall robot built like an army's commanding officer, with a captain's cap and neat red beard.

"Want seems to be the problem?" he asked loudly in a heavy British accent. At least, it was British according to the references in my programming.

"Colonel, sir!" one of the other 'bots answered with a crisp salute. "He has emerged from his capsule!"

"Really?" the tall one's attention turned to me, his eyes narrowing. I stood my ground with a calm yet fierce look, for I had yet to know if he was working for Wily or not.

"What is your operating number?" he barked, startling me.

I raised an eyebrow. "I have no 'operating number,' I have a name. My name is Zero."

Excited whisperings ensued. "SILENCE!" the tall one… 'Colonel' I think it was, commanded. All at once the entire hall fell silent, no sound even coming from high in the rafters. The quiet held until it was practically tangible, and my patience was wearing thin.

"Where the hell am I? Who are you people? I bet you work for Wily!" I accused, ready for anything.

All seemed taken aback by my words, some even looked at me as if I were the craziest 'bot around. Didn't they know?!

"Uh, Sir?" one of them said meekly. "Are you referring to the human Albert Wily?"

"Yea, that's the bastard," I snorted.

"Well… um…" he continued, eyes widening. "That human has been dead for quite some time now… almost a century ago. Are you from that time?"

My mouth dropped open. "Wha… what did you… s-say?" I took a step backwards, nearly falling in the process. The HELL…? "A… CENTURY?"

One hundred years… gods… no… that meant… Blues… Sierra… Doctor Light… dead and gone… and I was alone… alone… ALONE… WILY… WILY'S FAULT…

"NOOOOOOO!!!" I screamed, clutching my head. My anger quickly rose to boiling point! I was furious! How dare Wily do this to me!! He killed everything I loved… then sent me away so he could die… AND I WOUILD NEVER HAVE A CHANCE TO EXACT REVENGE!

"Wily… you bastard… BASTARD! You killed them… YOU KILLED THEM!"

I heard the rising, shrill voices of those around me… I didn't care… they made me angry… I wanted it to stop… STOP IT!! STOP IT!! I reached for my sabre, activating it and slashing once to the side in a single fluid motion. I lashed out at the robots closest to me… I think I even cut one of them… Good. That way they'll see my point…

"MAVERICK! MAVERICK!" They were screaming now. What was that? Maverick? I wasn't one of those, whatever it was! I was ZERO, and I was PISSED OFF…

"GET OUT OF THE WAY!" I shrieked, throwing myself into the fleeing masses of them in order to get out… I wanted to kill something… anything… I was so angry… I had to have vengeance! My sabre flashed in every direction, either driving away or driving through the assortment of robots that were now my enemies…

COLONEL****************************************************(AN: I'm gonna mark whose POV it is if they aren't a main character …J )

The red Maverick cut through my troops effortlessly in his wild rage… how could one so… outdated… do such a thing!? It was astounding to see, yet my circuits were frazzled at the thought of where he had come from… but even worse, what he was capable of once he was loose in the city. Whether he was a Maverick or not, he did not appear to care who or what he harmed as long as his bloodlust was appeased…

"Colonel!" one of the officers hollered as he stumbled across his fallen comrades. "What should we do?!"

"Retreat." I ordered grimly. "I'm calling the commanders." The officers' red eyes widened in shock, causing a small smile to creep across my face. Yes. A century-old reploid was on the run, and the only ones who could handle it were the commanders. I pressed a button on my wrist, and instantly a screen appeared in thin air, showing the Maverick Hunter insignia. A golden, bald face with almost-blue pupil-less green eyes came into view, his face set in expressionless stone as always.

"Alpha Commander here."

"Commander," I greeted him formally with a slight bow of my head. "This is Colonel from Repliforce. A red reploid has emerged from a hidden capsule in the warehouse… and is believed to have gone Maverick."

"Maverick!?" he exclaimed, features changing only slightly to betray surprise. "What is his destination? Characteristics? Operating number?"

"Red reploid armed with green energy sabre answering to the call-sign of 'Zero'. His destination is unknown, but he appeared to be heading in the direction of the mines."

"Confirmed red Maverick with sabre," he repeated, looking away for a moment to study an unseen monitor. "I'll send Major Gamma's unit down there right away. Alpha Commander Sigma out."

Now all that could be done was wait.

GAMMA******************************************************

"Gamma here. What's the problem, Commander?" I was surprised to receive a call from such a high-ranking officer, let alone so soon after the last purge of Mavericks three months ago. No intent to brag, but my team was one of the top forces at Hunter HQ… and if we got a call, then it HAD to be bad…

"Major, we've got a situation near the outer mines of Sky Lagoon. A red Maverick armed with a beam saber has just gotten loose."

I was insulted… just one poor reploid gone bad?! "Forgive me, Commander, but can't another team handle ONE Maverick?"

"Are you questioning my orders, Gamma?"

"No, sir!" I replied smoothly with a crisp salute. "I'll get right to it."

"See that you do," he stated with a slight snarl pulling at his gleaming gold mouth. "This guy managed to escape Colonel's forces. Proceed with caution. Alpha Commander Sigma, out."

"Head Major Gamma, out." I answered, my mind now abuzz with questions. This reploid had taken out Colonel from Repliforce's team? How could that be? Caution, indeed… I suppose it really was a job for a high calibre troop of soldiers such as my own… I grinned. This might even be fun.

I switched the channels on my vid-link, taking a deep breath to make my announcement. "Attention, Gamma Team! Maverick sighting in Sector 58-- Outer Mines of Sky Lagoon! Scramble!"

It took fifteen minutes to get there. The damn transport capsules had decided to take a vacation again, delaying us precious time. Each wasted moment made me increasingly edgy, for I was not eager to see the escalating havoc that this new Maverick was wreaking. It still played around in my head the idea of ONE… ONE damn robot taking out an entire team of elites! Where had he come from? I'd found no files of him, and Commander Sigma had no further information aside from his being 'red and armed with a beam sabre.' Hell… it wasn't gonna be easy doing this.

I briefed my troops directly before transit, leaving out the bit on exactly how strong he was and instead spoon-feeding them pride and self-assurance I was positive we'd need. I had yet to see if we could pull it off… and now the chance had come. At last we arrived at the mines, where wrecked construction and digger-bots lay strewn everywhere as if a human child's tantrum had been too harsh on his toys. Toys, indeed… it was horrible. Even guard reploids and some innocent bystanders had been slain… I had to look away, averting my gaze forward. This guy was dead meat.

"All right, boys!" I called. "Fan out and surround the area! I want any survivors evacuated before we head in!"

That alone took five minutes. There had been no survivors. Trying to keep up a good 'poker face' as humans call it, I called everyone to me for search assignments. The plan was to enter the mine's main entrance, then spread out as to cover more ground. If the Maverick were found, that team would signal all other teams in the vicinity for immediate assistance until the rest could get there. Finally, two guards would stay outside just in case the Maverick emerged from the compound without our knowledge. It was a perfect plan, one that had worked so many times in the past. It should have worked then.

Upon entering, I saw soldiers leave the main group one after the other, until my five best men were left alone with me in the primary chambers. We switched on our night-vision optical circuitry to further enable our success, but deep within those halls we found nothing. Once or twice we stumbled across a mutilated body of a helpless mining reploid… they had no chance…

I became more worried with each step. Why hadn't the other teams found anything? I double- and triple-checked the com channels… still nothing… no trace of the Maverick.

"Sir?" my second-in-command piped up. "Maybe he's left the area already?"

"No," I shook my head. "He's still here. All of the fallen 'bots we encountered were… recent. He has to be here."

"But sir--" he fell silent. I heard a distinct WHOOSH from behind me, then a soft chuckle. I froze. The sound of a heavy mass hitting the stone floors rang out, then the clanging footfalls of someone wanting to be noticed.

"That was too easy," he said smugly, stopping just behind me. "None of these guys even screamed. All of the others did."

Had I a heart, it would have stopped then. "You mean… my unit… they--"

"Died?" he finished, cackling again though much louder this time. "Yeah, I took care of 'em easily enough… noisy bastards though, 'cuz they would have blown my cover had I not cut off their com-links."

So that was why I'd received no contacts… "You murdered them all… you bastard…" I was near to shaking in anger now, unable to bear the disgrace. It should have worked… it was only one Maverick…

I saw his sabre now, though his form was still cloaked within the enveloping darkness. It twisted and writhed around me, stopping at last at my throat.

"I know that Colonel called you to dispose of me," he was saying. "But you were all weaklings. Go on, call your best fighter. I want to let everyone know who the strongest is."

"And if I refuse?"

"Well then," he pondered a moment. "Either way I'll kill you, but if you don't… I'll ravage every city that is in my power to reach and destroy every occupant until I get what I want. How does that grab you?"

I had no choice… my own life was forfeit, but I could still save countless others… I had to have faith in the commanders… I opened a vid-signal, preparing in my mind the words for a brief message.

"Maverick Hunter HQ, this is Major Gamma," I said as evenly as I could, but I could FEEL the damn Maverick's grin… "I repeat… this is Major Gamma. Unit Gamma has been defeated… we request assistance of Alpha Commander Sigma. Repeat. Request assistance of Commander Sigma. If there is no compliance millions of lives are at stake. Repeat, millions--"

The blade finished its track across my neck, cutting off the transmission. The plan was perfect. It should have worked. It should have worked…

SIGMA******************************************************

"Commander, I think you should hear this!" exclaimed a soldier as he burst into my office. I overlooked the outburst for a moment, switching on the communications screen. Before my eyes appeared the image of Major Gamma… with the oddest look on his face.

"Gamma!" I yelled. "What the hell is going on?"

"--assistance of Commander Sigma. Repeat. Request assistance of commander Sigma… millions of lives at stake…"

A one-way transmission… that was quickly cut off in a flash of teal light. I cursed. It only meant that Gamma Unit was gone, and the Maverick was still loose and fully dangerous. I considered for a moment. Gamma's team was near the top of the elite list. If he didn't make it, then it was time for desperate measures. It was time for me to step into the fray. This would be interesting… yes, most interesting.

I emerged from the comfort of my office to a private transit module, grabbing my saber on the way out. I grumbled to myself about incompetent underlings unable to finish a job themselves, but my mind snapped these open thoughts shut when I transported directly to the mines of Sky Lagoon. Spotting two survivors cowering near the entrance, I guessed instantly that they had been assigned guard duty, and apparently the Maverick hadn't emerged to dispose of them. Perhaps he didn't realize they were there… not that it mattered. I had full confidence that those twin rookies would be child's play for that creature.

"What's our situation?" I asked upon approach. They whirled around to face me, shocked almost beyond words.

"C-c-commander!" one of them exclaimed, snapping to attention with a swift salute. It seemed the other was to petrified to do anything but stare at me, which I could understand. He knew he was too weak for this job… I liked an honest reploid.

"Where's that red Maverick that wiped out Gamma's unit?" I mused aloud, though I already knew the answer.

"He's… he's in there. He's inside that door…" the 'bot pointed to the mine's entrance stupidly, and I restrained myself from rolling my eyes. Incompetent fools…

"You may leave now. I'll take care of this personally."

"By yourself, Commander?!"

Of course, by myself, the idiot! Instead I replied calmly, "I don't want any more of my people being sacrificed." It was true enough, and they two bought it, letting me pass. It was not as if they could refuse. They were too afraid of me to disobey a direct order. I stalked past them, tall and proud. I kicked the door to the mine open, instantly alert for anything once crossing the threshold into darkness. Hearing a muffled gasp of surprise ahead of me I adjusted my eyesight, though at first all I saw was a long blond ponytail.

Just great. They sent me after a damn GIRL?

Boy, was I in for it. The 'girl' turned around, at last revealing it was indeed a male reploid… but his face… his face would forever haunt my days. His eyes shone emerald fire, lit from within by a raging fury that he made no effort to hold back. Upon seeing me his mouth twisted into a feral grin, catching me off-guard as he began his charge.

I fell out of my trance just in time to easily dodge his punch, but again I was surprised at his speed when he round-housed another blow that I once more dodged easily.

'He's good,' I thought with a grin. 'This will be fun, indeed…'

Just as he turned around to strike with a powerful kick I was ready for him, effortlessly throwing him aside with my fist. The Maverick grunted upon impact with a pile of stacked construction materials but smoothly got back to his feet without further noise… so much like a ghost he was… like something out of the past.

Watching him approach again was a curious sensation; one I'd not ever experienced in other battles… dust swirled around him like dark mist, parting as if to bow to his passing. I couldn't see his face then, but I felt his powerfully gleaming stare from beneath the glowing blue power crystal.

Suddenly he was in front of me out of nowhere, white-gloved hands flying in random blurs of motion. It was too quick to dodge all of them, but the majority of the blows glanced off of my armor… the fool! I was at least ten times stronger than he could ever hope to be!

Finding a split-second opening in his rhythm of consecutive hits I threw my fist forward to meet his. Sparks flew from the solid contact of knuckles, the sheer standstill of equal momentum freezing the Maverick in midair. Grinning, I added an extra uppercut to his exposed midsection and sent him flying upwards into the rocky ceiling. Bits of stone and shrapnel cascaded down to the floors as he tried to free himself, allowing me to draw my plasma sabre. It was then that I heard the laughter… the medium-pitched cackles that halted me in my steps. As I stared up at my opponent he pulled himself slightly out of the hole the impact had made…

Those damn eyes again! The shadows contrasted with the glittering quality of those emerald voids… framed in widened expanses of white that complemented pearled fanged teeth… his face contorted into the angles of a demon… nothing betrayed a sense of compassion or mercy. Never before had I encountered such a Maverick; his freezing, dark met mine…

However possible it could be his leer widened ever further, and he snapped his teeth open and shut in sheer anticipation. Never wavering in the midst of maddening calm he reached for a half-exposed metal pipe, ripped it from its foundations and smoothly dropped to the ground to face me.

Frantically I swung my sabre at him to ward him off, but to my frustration he met each blow with an experienced, effortless parry. The pitch of his laughter raised dramatically to end up as a blood-freezing war shriek… momentarily disoriented by the sound my moves became sloppy; so unbearable it was that I blindly lunged forward…

I was wide open, my side unguarded… A bloodcurdling scream of agony erupted brutally from my throat as the Maverick gave a full down-swipe that ripped my arm cleanly from my shoulder. Circuits sparked and crackled, the stench of pseudo-blood and melted wires and metals filled the air. My complete vision flashed into crimson and black, then melted into yellow and orange as something crushed solidly against my face and sent me sprawling onto the ground. I roared again as my body left the ground again… He had me by the neck… The Maverick spit on my ruined face and cackled again once I was thrown into a nearby wall. I opened my eyes slowly, finding them blurred by the rising dust and dim lights… but I saw his shadow against a wall nearby… standing tall and… frightening.

That was it… That whole time, the sensation I had felt was fear! I saw then, for the first time I understood how it felt to be cornered, battered and bloody like a caged animal… and the very embodiment of this primal emotion was that damn Maverick…

The shadow moved. Still I could not see his true position, lingering in the shadows like a wraith. He took one step, and then another… did time slow down? My breathing became panicked as I scrambled to get up… but I found that could not get any further than my knees… without a weapon and my arm I was completely helpless, and yet some part of me refused to submit…

"You were supposed to be the best they had?" he mocked me in a loud alto voice from his obscured vantage point. "You are a joke."

"No!" I shouted, using my single fist to pound the rocks of the wall. "This cannot be happening!"

"Quit whining, you weakling."

A blow landed fully on my chest plate, easily cracking the green armor. I screamed again, receiving another kick to the face. I tried in vain to crawl out of range but the large red-booted foot covered in my freshly spilt blood came crashing down onto my back. I tumbled down to the ground again… and before I could even think of a way to defend myself my head was snapped backwards, held in a deadly lock with the Maverick's hand gripping my chin. I felt my auto-repair systems begin to overload and shut down… and now the pain was coming without buffer!

My screams became more frequent as the grip on my neck tightened… so this is what it was like to die… dimly I supposed it was a grand enough exit for one such as myself… dying in battle. Slowly, ever so slowly he was letting me suffer, enjoying every moment of my agony. His laughter rang in my ears the entire time, never ceasing… I was helpless, unable to defend… sparks danced over me as systems were disabled and my sensory network was snapping apart bit by bit…

But then… just as I had at last given in to my cruel yet inevitable fate… my tormentor stopped. Abruptly he dropped me like a brick, and when I barely turned myself around to look I saw him grab his helmet and begin to scream and shout senseless words at an ear-shattering decibel level. An object began to appear on the blue power crystal at the front of his helmet… was it a letter… perhaps a number? I did not stop to think, realizing that it was truly my only chance for survival. Gathering what remaining reserves of strength I had I propelled myself at my opponent, fist at the ready. I swung with all my might, impacting the power crystal. Beneath the blow it shattered into a billion tiny shards, and to my complete astonishment the screams stopped, the Maverick's deadly and frightening eyes went blank… and he fell.

I watched him stupidly until the instant his crimson-armored body collapsed. I was aghast. I… had beaten him. It seemed impossible; almost surreal or like a vision that humans might have… but it finally sank in that I was the standing victor.

'But what happened?' I thought to myself. 'No Maverick has ever just let up like this one did… this is no ordinary reploid.'

So, without further consideration of the matter I concentrated on keeping myself upright, using the walls for support until I reached the bright sunlight shining through the mine's entrance. Once I exposed myself again to the outside world I immediately heard the two remaining members of Major Gamma's team speaking excitedly to one another.

"Look! It's Commander Sigma!" exclaimed one.

"Incredible!" added the second. "Now I am certain that there's no match for the Commander… what--?"

I had finally reached them, grasping my stump of an arm and forcing myself to keep an even voice to bark out orders.

"Take that red Maverick… to the repair center, and… and call Doctor Cain… I wish to have that Maverick studied…"

"Commander!" the two gasped aloud upon seeing my weakened state. "Are you okay?"

"I'll live!" I roared, shoving past them in a huff as they attempted to block my path. I didn't need any sentimental fools looking after me… I could take care of myself easily enough!

I reached the capsule transit pad after a few long and painful minutes, pressing the HQ repair center's coordinates into the keypad. I sighed heavily just as I felt my body dissipate into traveling atoms and photons, the thrill of victory keeping me conscious just long enough for me to vaguely see the white-clad medical bots setting me onto a floating stretcher.

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Everyday there are too much things I can't say…

I always fear I might hurt someone…

Surely I'm making myself with pent-up feelings…

But…but it shouldn't be like that!

That just isn't me…

Author's Notes: SOOOO???? How do ya people like it???? Pleez review!!!! ;_; ~Sierra Omega~


	2. Questions...

C&E2ch2 __

The Phoenix

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Chapter Two: Questions…

AN: Hello again! Here's chapter 2… and I didn't mark all of the POV's this time but you should be able to figure them out easily enough! Have fun and review por favor! Arigato! ~Sierra Omega~

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Donna nanigamo One More Chance

Hakjimete nai koto mada aru hazu yo…

Donna itami mo One More Chance

Sore wa kakkiake ni dekiru kara

Sukoshi demo ii… 

Atarashii nani ka…

Mitsuketai…

CAIN*******************************************************

I heard the news quickly enough. A red Maverick had been taken down… by Commander Sigma himself should the rumors and buzzings of ensigns and lower-level Maverick Hunters prove true… and was being brought back to the lab for careful study.

Needless to say I was eager to begin the analysis, for the Maverick Virus, discovered some decades ago in the newly developed robots called 'Reploids', and there was no known cure.

Reploids, or Human Replica Droids, are robots built with a unique anatomy mimicking that of humans, and are installed with a special chip that defines their personalities and growth. Until recently it had only been speculated as to the true creators of the chips, let alone the robots who were predecessors of today's reploids.

The Maverick Virus became a problem some time after the perfection of reploids, though no one knew exactly when it came about. It is a program that affects the very chips that gives a reploid life, and turns them into feral, lethal monsters with the mission to kill anything and everything. Though they were few in the beginning, they grew steadily in number though no one understood how, and banded together as a group to take over the planet, their mission: kill humans.

Many died then… but thanks to a group of reploid scientists including myself, the Maverick Hunters came into existence-- simply an organized small army of powerful robots designed to protect mankind and destroy Mavericks.

Things could have been a lot easier if we had been able to capture a live Maverick, One that had not self-detonated or been smashed into pieces by a Hunter… For I needed to study an intact (or somewhere close to that) specimen to attempt to try and find a cure, or even a vaccine, for the Maverick Virus. This red Maverick was key to human survival, should he qualified for study.

"Doctor Cain!" a reploid nurse called out from her post, one hand tapping her headset. "Transit of the captured red Maverick is complete, and he is being taken to your lab immediately."

I nodded assent. "Good. Any news on the status of Sigma?"

She paused, speaking into the comm for a moment. "Alpha Commander Sigma remains in critical condition."

So it was true. The best Hunter in the HQ was sent to dispose of this robot… and apparently barely came out of the struggle alive. My adrenaline rose at the thought of what I could discover from this Maverick! I could see myself finding the cure… a forming utopia of reploids and humans living together in peace at last… so close…

"Doctor?" the nurse said again. "Shouldn't you be heading to the lab? A pair of security bots are waiting for you."

I snapped out of my dreamworld, temporarily frazzled as I tried to make sense of her question… I was getting old. "Huh? Oh, yes… of course. Thank you."

I turned around to walk down the hallways to my lab, nodding acknowledgement to many of the Hunters brushing past me. I smiled to myself. If all went well, I could celebrate with a glass of vodka or two that night… my grin widened.

***********************************************************

I stepped from my small office to get some air, silently crossing the corridors where a Hunter walked by here and there. There wasn't much bustle now, for the Maverick emergency had past a few hours ago. My mouth pressed into a thin line at the thought of Sigma's fate. How could he just jump into a battle with an unidentified Maverick alone? I should have gone with him. But I wasn't even notified of the situation until well after Major Gamma's team had been obliterated except for two lucky ones, and Sigma was in the middle of his fight.

It's not like I would have been in any better shape if I'd gone in his place, but two against one had better odds when going against Mavericks. I was easily Sigma's equal, though I never dared to admit it in front of anyone aside from one single soul… it wouldn't be right, and I had no desire to humiliate the Commander, especially since I was just barely below his rank in the chain of command… Beta Commander.

I had fumed the entire time I had waited for news, having no place to vent my anger since every training room was occupied. I always tried to tell Cain to build a set of training areas for the Commanders alone, but he never got around to it… he was always drunk. Even when operating on severely injured reploids he was rarely sober… and I had yet to discover what his fascination was with alcohol.

I shook my head in frustration, clenching my fists. I passed the training areas, but swiftly turned around to see if one was free. There was. Breathing a sigh of relief I made my way through groups of trainees and rookies, who all began to whisper amongst themselves when I neared (and for what reason, I had no clue.)

"Commander X!" one trainee waved as he sparred with a friend. I grinned back in reply, trying not to betray the dark emotions I felt. It wasn't a good idea to show others you were angry unless it was necessary… I found that out early enough. I looked back at the young reploid, who was still grinning in my direction as his sparring partner side-kicked him across the face. I had to force myself not to laugh… I knew Fiero held me in high esteem, what with his schematics and armor designs spawning from my own… so I humored him once in a while with a smile or even a word of merit for his strengths.

At last I reached the unoccupied room, where upon stepping inside I let out a heavy sigh of relief.

"Computer," I said aloud. "Close and lock doors, authorization Alpha Epsilon Omega." The heavy titanium doors slid shut, and I heard the satisfying double-click of the locks. A smile crept across my face, now that I was able to let out the pressures of command without distraction or interruption.

"Computer," I continued, "…activate Beta Commander X training program OmicronTheta.exe."

"File loaded," came the dull and lifeless tones of the computer's voice. "Now awaiting activation code, level voiceprint."

Immediately after speaking the designated series of words a loud beeping ensued as the interior lights dimmed. The noise faded into a low hum, indicating that the holo-projectors had been turned on.

"Activating Omicrontheta.exe, level 6."

A shimmering figure appeared before me, and the spar began.

*************************************************************

So this was the troublesome red Maverick. I must say that his design was quite ingenious… and all at once familiar to me in some fashion. I resolved to myself dimly to run a check on the schematics… even for a century-old reploid this Maverick's construction was easily fifty years ahead of today's robots!

I marveled even at his eye-catching armor, the blood-crimson color bright; the well-crafted face embracing unblinking emerald eyes and framed by such a helmet to give the mind's eye the image of a devil…

Feh… not much of a devil right then… I looked again, seeing not something of a hellish or demonic nature but similar to that of a fallen angel. No clues stuck out as to his true personality before the virus permeated his systems… but perhaps I could help him somehow…

My excitement rose at the thought. At last I could study the Maverick virus up close! Hurriedly I connected various equipment to his outer armor, wanting to get much done before my late appointment that night.

The sensors picked up readings the instant they were switched on, and the hunt for the virus began. I grasped a bottle of strong vodka in my left hand, taking a sip now and then to ease my nerves. While watching several graphs and data tables blinking on and off my computer console my mind raced, for all of the technology I was using was purely experimental. As I had before mentioned, no one had ever been able to capture a live Maverick, so there had been no real chance to test it all. Hence, all the while of waiting began taking its toll merely over the course of minutes on me. I thought of all the years I had worked to study and perfect reploids… To destroy their impurities and find out such debatable question such as whether or not a reploid could ever have a soul. Such an inquiry has existed to man about Artificial Intelligence for decades, even centuries!

So many questions, so much to learn… I only hoped I would live long enough to answer them.

__

No matter how many tears One More Chance

There ought to be things that have yet to begin

No matter how much pain One More Chance

For I can do it…

Even if it be small…

I wanna discover something new…

AN: Yay! It's done! Chapter Three will be out soon! Review!!!! ~Sierra Omega~


	3. Lessons in Combat

C&E2ch3 __

The Phoenix

****

Chapter Three: Lessons in Combat

Author's Notes: Chapter Three is heeeerrreee!!! V^o^V Read and Review! By the way… this chapter's kinda short (sorry) and it's all X's POV. 

__

Minna no onaji fuku de…

Medatanaku shite 'reba…

Kirawarenai hazu da to

Tsumerarani seikaku…

I jumped backwards as the hologram slashed at me with deadly litanium **(AN: yes I spelled that right… if you watch the old cartoon you'd get it)** claws, coming within microns of my midsection. Even though no contact was made I felt the poison that coated the sharpened metal…

The holo-Maverick raised its arm up, pulling his hand inside hide his wrist to make room for his plasma cannon. I cursed, ducking and rolling out of the way just as the deadly wave cascaded over my previous position. Glaring at the Maverick, my eyes widened at the realization that he was no longer there…

I whirled to the right at the sound of laughter and a charging cannon… I hurriedly powered up my own weapon to attack, but the glowing wall of energy was already upon me! Desperately I let loose a wild ball of plasma from my X-buster, speeding outward to collide with the Maverick's blast.

Contact! A huge explosion rang out when the two powers met, momentarily rendering me blind and deaf. However… that nanosecond was more than enough of a lapse in attention for a poison-coated set of claws to strike me across the neck, just barely… it was a small set of scratches, but already the toxins were affecting my internal systems! The Maverick came at me again with its crazed golden fiery gleaming maniacally in anticipation and bloodlust.

I tried to knock myself out of the path of this new charge, but my body would not respond to my mind's commands… he raised his claws again, slicing in an agonizingly clean arc into and through my arm as if the blue armor wasn't even there… My blood spurted from the infected wound as a crimson explosion, my opponent freezing into a locked position to savor my despair and suffering as he rotated his bulky arm to irritate the gashes… I cried out once in pain, my face twisted into the guises of horror, disgust and overwhelming agony at once…

"Commander X."

The clipped tones of the training computer cut like a blunt knife into my mind, automatically freezing the holographic Maverick into place. I winced, gritting my teeth to keep my voice even.

"Computer… remove… Holo-Mav Level 8…"

"Now removing. Stand by."

The fearsome opponent erased from existence, and I felt the toxic poisons leave my body with the projection. However… contact wounds from mock battles do not disappear, and so therefore the claw marks through my arm remained. I clutched at the wound wincing grievously at the blood seeping out between my fingers.

"Commander, there is a new program user. Do you wish to accept a sparring challenge?"

I thought for a moment. "Affirmative. Initiate masked spar program _BetaOmega.exe_ in one minute."

I sighed, walking to the small alcove where the medkit was stored. Hesitantly I removed my left hand from my injury, the white glove sticky with blood. I tried my best not to look while wrapping the deep wound tightly with a bandage to stanch the bleeding that had already begun to slow.

"Ten seconds to initiate."

I secured the bindings tightly about my shoulder, closing off the alcove as I walked to the center of the training area.

"Initiating masked sparring program. Please select holo-mask."

"Select residual gray holo-skeleton only," I answered crisply, stretching out slightly to warm up.

"Stand by."

I waited a few seconds, and soon the masked image of my new opponent flickered into existence. Silver and blue, he stood six feet tall, a violet power crystal shone brightly from the forehead of a demon's head helmet.

He raised his face, where twin pools of midnight blue glittered to a near black. His features remained blank, though I sensed an aura of determined anxiety as he activated an indigo plasma sabre. I raised my X-Buster in defensive stance, tense and eager to begin despite the beating I just took.

Tangible moments of anticipation passed over us to the point I could not breathe from the thick silence. At last the pre-battle trance was broken when my opponent took a step forward. I let out a low-energy blast from my cannon, racing backward to dodge the incoming sabre slice. He continued running until the instant my blast made contact, then disappeared in a blinding flash.

Not wanting to make the same mistake as before I kept my eyes open, every nerve trying to determine the reploid's new position. The smoke cleared, but still there remained no sign of him… I thought for a moment that I had truly won, but my combat experience scolded that no battle was ever won so easily. 

'Where are you?' I thought. 'You're close… I can feel it… but…" Then I heard the low hum of plasma somewhere behind me, and I whirled around in time to duck a horizontal swipe aimed at my stomach, reflexes pulling me into a froward roll and using my feet to hook onto my opponent's ankles. With a grin I yanked at his boots fluidly, dragging him onto the ground… Then, using the force of his fall I propelled myself to my feet, twisting around in midair to expertly aim a fresh blast of high-power X-Buster power at his chest.

Faintly uttering a curse he tried to roll out of the path of the energy, but a meant-to-miss punch pointing to his face caused him to take the blow head-on.

I jumped backwards and out of range only to see my fuming opponent struggle to his feet, armored chest-plate dented significantly. Growling, he crouched to pick up his fallen beam sabre, reminding me somehow of a cornered-- and extremely angry-- cat.

Swiftly and gracefully he retrieved the weapon, then in a single motion rose, gained speed and charged again. Caught unprepared I tumbled into a sloppy sidestep… but suddenly he faded out of existence.

Perplexed yet alert I powered up the trusty X-Buster while rotating to the right… and my eyes widened to see him approaching again! I fired, but yet again he vanished… I turned to the left… and there he was! Confusion sang within my head as I fired a bolt of lightning-fast power. I rushed to the charge again, expecting the same hit-and-fade trick. To my surprise though, this time the blue reploid leaped straight up into the air… reaching a good fifty feet… and stopped dead. In midair.

From beneath the midnight blue helmet I saw his wide leer, raising his sabre high above him. The indigo beam flared to life as if on a cue, and a flash of light announced the existence of magnificent silver wings… made of pure, high density plasma. I stared in awe at this amazing technology.

Spreading the wings to their fullest he twisted himself into an elegant dive… swooping in a perfect arc with sabre blazing as a bolt of lightning splitting the sky. I judged his trajectory well enough, but my shock came from the sudden burst of speed that sent him spinning…

All that was left to do than was slide under his arc. I kept my eyes on his position, ready to spring at any moment; however the caution I took proved futile soon enough. Each dive he gained even more speed, seeming to phase in and out of view in a blue and silver blur. Disconcerted by his aerial advantage I charged my cannon again, closing my eyes to clear my mind.

Rushes of displaced air hit me on the left, the hum of a plasma sabre echoing. I kicked outward but only hit a small current of wind, and then absolute silence fell. Opening my eyes once more caused me to nearly jump out of my skin, for there he stood not six inches in front of me. I punched wildly, and somehow my fist went right through his armor! My gaze raised to meet his triumphant one, but I was not yet ready to admit defeat… A tap on the shoulder broke the defiant stare I gave. Slowly I turned, and was immediately knocked to the floor by a jab to the helmet.

The ground rushed up to meet me with a resounding CLANG and before I could get up a large blue boot anchored itself onto my back. That was it… I lost.

"Nice job, X," said my opponent, removing his boot to release me from my pinned and helpless position. "You put up a great fight."

Wait a second… I knew that voice! Hurrying to my feet I saw truly the blue eyes, brown hair and indigo plasma sabre… graceful energy wings…

"Is that **_YOU,_** Angel?!" I cried in disbelief, drawing from the figure a smile. The holo-image shimmered, then flickered away. The door to an adjacent training room opened, and the one who stepped through confirmed my suspicions.

I snorted. "Shoulda known… You're the only one other than the commanders with access to these programs."

She… yes, she… threw a small grin my way, tossing her long and silky brown hair behind one delicate, tanned shoulder. Tall, but not as tall as the hologram she had conjured, she remained a mostly silent figure who tended to fade into the background. But it was not to say that she was one to be ignored... she was indeed one-of-a-kind.

For Sierra Light was half human, half reploid. A horrible accident should have killed her… but her grandfather (also my creator) saved her life by implementing his ingenious cybernetics technology to repair her lost tissue. Now she was trapped between woman and machine… both blessed and cursed with eternal youth as a twenty-one year old, as well as the ability to live for hundreds of years.

"What were you thinking?" I demanded angrily. "You know I can't fight you! You might have been seriously hurt or…"

"X." She raised a long, slender-fingered hand to silence me, smile fading just a bit… "You didn't even realize it was me. And in case you hadn't noticed, I just beat you."

My mouth dropped open. Hell… I hated when she was right… "You've been training," was all I could muster to say.

The grin brightened on her lovely face, then washed away completely as a star in supernova. "Yes. But I hadn't intended to battle you. We have to go and meet Cain now… Actually, we're late. Your lockout codes were on, so the only way to get your attention was to initiate a spar."

My turn to smile. "You always have found a way around things, Angel. All right then… let's go and find Cain."

__

Saying I won't be despised…

If I wear the same clothes as the rest

And blend with them…

What a boring character

Author's Notes: What do you guys think so far? Please let me know! ~Sierra Omega~


	4. To my readers...

****

To my readers…

I'm terribly sorry for not making my deadlines as promised. A number of things have hindered my progress, but I don't want to burden you all with excuses… I had some help in getting back into this story again, and that thanks goes to **Chaos_no_Mazoku, Dark Phoenix,** and two very kind reviewers who are named in the next chapter. 

Now that I've once again found my inspiration, be sure to expect more of this story very soon. 

Thank you for being patient with me, and for your constant support. It truly warms my heart to know that people care about my writing and encourage me to go forward.

__

~Sierra Omega~


	5. Sonata of Agony

****

THE PHOENIX

Chapter Five: Sonata of Agony

__

Author's Notes: And here it is at last, chapter five. I know I've said it already in the previous note, but again… I am very sorry to not have updated. I don't think I would have ever gotten it done this soon without friendly reminders and encouragement, and thus I dedicate this chapter wholeheartedly to **Atreyu452** and **Zycker**. Thank you so much for your support.

__

~~~

Motto shite mita koto mo

Nanka gaman wo shite ita…

~~~

****

~Sierra~

"Let's go and find Cain."

I nodded in response. The rise in number of Mavericks increased every day… and Commander Sigma himself was nearly irreparable after his encounter with one. I had yet to discover the details of this incident, but it was just icing on the cake… these corrupted reploids were bad enough without being able to take out super-elite Hunters!

Walking down the twisting corridors of Hunter HQ was always a silent experience for me, the robots passing and crossing paths around me a constant reminder of my haunted past.

"You know," X was saying. "Sigma managed to take down the Maverick… Cain's probably studying him as we speak."

That got my attention in less than a normal human's heartbeat, my bionic arm clasping on his shoulder to stop him and myself in our tracks.

"You mean it was captured?!"

The blue robot nodded solemnly. It cost us the entire elite Gamma Unit… and possibly the Commander's life… to do it. That's a pretty big sacrifice for just one Maverick, Angel. You know that better than anyone… you oversaw Sigma's planning…"

"X. I only looked at the schematics," I clenched my fist. "… but I had NOTHING to do with his construction. I swore I wouldn't… I couldn't…"

"Easy Sierra," he soothed, eyes clouded with unmistakable sadness. "I know… I'm sorry I said it."

"No, it's all right," I answered, attempting to regain my composure. My gaze traveled to my left hand-- yet another reminder of all the hells I had experienced.

"Come on," he prompted me gently as he placed a hand over my real one. "Cain's waiting for us."

I nodded slowly, but then a curious thought struck me. "I highly doubt that. Capturing the Maverick most likely made him feel a need to celebrate."

X rolled his eyes while slapping his forehead. "Drunk again." For the first time that day, I truly grinned. 

****

~X~

I walked closely beside her for the remaining few meters to Cain's private lab, ever wary of her turbulent mood. I knew that the old pain never left her for a single moment each day, and not even I was able to ease it. I remember my first moments of activation, the first commands to me were to help her out of the rubble of Doctor Light's laboratory. He had worked furiously to at least complete my basic programming so that I could help to save Sierra… but at the time I uncovered her she was just barely clinging onto life, the entire left side of her body crushed into useless, dead tissue and bone pieces.

Skeptical then, I had every doubt that Light could save her, but somehow he reached whatever elusive life force she had left… forcing her to keep fighting off death…

I pressed on the keypad to the lab, the twin security 'bots stepping back in recognition of my authority. With a curt nod of their heads thy left, going about their business as their duty commanded. Dr. Cain hurled the door open so hard that it nearly shuddered off its hinges. His graying hair was wild and untamed, eyes red from overuse and underlined in deep black.

"Oh, it's you X… and Sierra! Glad you could make it," he slurred in a low voice, but louder in volume than normal. "I have much to relate to you!"

"Dammit Cain. "Sierra growled in annoyance. "That's it. I am taking away your vodka cabinet this week." The old man looked like he'd been shot at the remark, and I struggled (though in vain) to keep myself from laughing. Then he blinked, looking at me as if only then realizing we were there. 

"Where's…?" he trailed off, gesturing around us curiously. I stiffened; Sierra glanced over her shoulder at a sudden loss of her former anger. 

"He'll be here… when he'll be here. He'd want us to go on ahead… I'll fill him in later if need be, if he's not listening right now."

No one responded. Cain was swaying back and forth due to his inebriation, and I felt great pity fir the Maverick he'd been studying. Sierra meanwhile was staring off behind us as if she was able to see something we could not. Silence lingered for a time until Sierra suggested at last that we see the Maverick.

Cain at last snapped out of whatever dreams he'd been lost in to nod eagerly. A drunken grin pulled at his aged features, not flattered by spittle caught in his beard. "Yes, yes. You must see… this is remarkable!"

Grabbing one arm in each of his, we found ourselves dragged over to an examination table. However, to keep perhaps a sense of suspense a white sheet covered the Maverick, and I raised an eyebrow at the apparently tall form beneath it. Ill-placed computers and entangled wires surrounded the area, as well as numerous shards of broken glass I assumed to be from careless tosses of vodka bottles though the air in drunken frenzy. Out of the corner of my eye, I couldn't help but smile at Sierra's disapproving glances at the glass and her sigh of silent anger.

"He's over here!" Cain was ranting loudly to us, waving his hands and arms around madly over his head as if we were deaf and/or blind. Who could tell what the old man was thinking? Sighing, I turned my attention back to him. With an increasing grin in my direction, he pulled off the sheet, and I froze.

Eyes widened to their fullest, my mouth dropped open in a mix of terror and surprise. Oh, no…

"X?" Cain hissed, his felicity fading fast between hiccups. "You look like you've seen a ghost!"

"What?" Sierra chimed in softly from a few steps behind me. "Let me see." I threw her a warning glance, but sadly, it only served to heighten her insatiable curiosity. "X?"

I stepped aside, and she walked up to my side with a hand delicately placed on my shoulder. "Who is it--" 

Her voice died. She was staring at the Maverick with the most complex look I had ever seen in my life on her face. Never tearing her gaze from the reploid on the table, she took a slow step back, then another.

"Angel…" I stammered. "Please tell me it isn't…"

But to my dismay she nodded, rivulets of tears beginning to stream down her face. With a sob she raised one hand to cover her mouth… and fled from the room crying. I wanted to go after her… comfort her as I sometimes did. However, the look on Cain's face told me I had a **lot** of explaining to do.

****

~?~

I saw her running down the halls towards me, and curious as I was, I stepped from my hiding place to catch her in my arms. Startled by my appearance as she so often was she looked up in confusion, and it was then that I realized she was crying.

"Sierra?" Only twice had I ever seen her this way… and both times, it had broken my heart.

She stared up at me with those twin pools of sad blue, and in the realization of who I was, her tears ran anew down her flawless face. "Blues…"

In reflex to her pain, I wrapped my arms about her in silence, allowing her to bury her face in my shoulder. She clung to me tightly, as if afraid to let go, and did not answer my unspoken question for some time.

"Zero… Blues, he's awake…" she whispered, a sob choking out as soon as the words were spoken. I froze, lifting her chin with a finger to look deeply into her eyes.

"What did you say?!"

"He's the Maverick everyone's been talking about, Blues… I don't know how… but he's been awakened again. I don't know how it happened!" 

"Wait… wait…" I interrupted. "You're telling me ZERO is the one who beat up **_SIGGY HIMSELF?_** But that's impossible!"

She frowned, but I noticed a small smile creeping up into her face. "I've told you not to call him that, Blues. But… yes. He is the one. Sigma is currently near-death…"

"But I don't get it. How could he just wake up? Could the Mavericks have found his capsule?"

"I don't know. It's a possibility… but… what now?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean… what do I do now? How will I explain what happened, and… you… me…"

It stung. Gods, how it stung. "So that's it. You're ashamed to tell him."

"N-no!"

I pulled away roughly. "Yes it is, and we both know it, Sierra! You still are in love with him… and I don't blame you for it. Don't misunderstand me. But you regret having to forget about him when you sealed him away… but I see now that I was merely there as someone to run to when he wasn't there."

And with that I turned away from her, and hung my head in shame. Such a fool I was… I'd expected it the entire time that it was the truth… but never had I wished to believe it. I heard her small, choked gasp from behind me and immediately her arms moved to surround my waist, hugging me tightly. I winced; it would only make things worse.

"Do you have any regrets about us, Blues?" she asked in a barely audible whisper, her breath fluttering against the back of my neck.

"I'm beginning to," I admitted through clenched teeth. Why must she ask now, when Zero had returned? I loved my brother dearly as any would their own, but at the cost of one so dear to themselves it would destroy their heart? No, I didn't hate him for any of it, not in the least; he'd had her first and I respected that… but…

"So you would take back everything… just drop me and leave me here alone?"

"Dammit Sierra!" I shuddered at the accusation. "You know I'd never do that no matter what, Zero or no Zero! I don't care if you go running back to him… but…" my voice cracked, "I'd still love you, even if you didn't feel the same. I'm only a reploid; I'm not human. I can live with such pain."

"Liar," she murmured, moving away. "I never thought of you as less than any human being. Look at me."

Slowly I turned, though only enough to gaze from the corner of one eye. She was crying still… and I had no doubt they were meant for Zero.

"Look at me," she repeated, spreading her hands as if to lay her soul bare for all to see. "I'm nothing. What you see in front of you is nothing more than a dead body kept alive by machinery; a soulless creature trapped in a tug-of-war between human and robot with nothing left save for perhaps the mind and personality. I should have _died_ in that explosion, Blues. Grandfather should have let nature run its course with me, instead of fighting against Fate. I…" she trailed off, her voice too swollen with emotion to continue. I stared at her blankly, but inside my mind was churning, my heart nearly stopped in realization. When had she become so cold? So cruelly serious? The words hung in the air like a late frost, echoing through the corridors as an ominous chant. It was all wrong… it _had_ to be!

"Sierra… I…"

"Don't say anything. Please. I want you to know right here and now that even if you regret every single moment you spent with me, I won't and never will. You were the one who was always there for me, even in the darkest of times you remained true to me, never once leaving me alone. You couldn't begin to understand how difficult it's been for me to adjust for these seven years we've been alive, after being in stasis for a century.

"I suppose what I'm trying to say is that I did give my heart away again, but this time to you. Yes, a piece will always remain with Zero, but now… now I'm confused. I don't know where my loyalties lie any more, though it's clear that I love you both, and I don't want either of you to leave… especially you, Blues."

I was speechless; she truly did return my deepest feelings, but was torn in two by an identical pull to Zero. But what a fool I had been, never to have seen it before!

"I've been blind…" I mused, raising my head to hesitantly meet her gaze. "Can you ever forgive my doubt?"

"Do you even have to ask?" I saw that her gaze had never left me, those deep blue orbs radiating with the purest of love. Her face was so close, the beautiful and delicate features brushing against mine by a hair's width as she spoke, her breath washing over the skin of my neck as a summer's breeze. Her eyes pierced into mine even through the thick visor, looking straight into my soul as no one else could ever hope to.

"You don't need to blame yourself for anything, Blues," she continued as she brushed her lips against mine in the softest of butterfly kisses. "It'll be okay."

I nodded, returning the kiss more deeply and feeling her arms wrap around my neck in response. I cherished the moment, storing it in my heart, for something told me that it would be the last in times to come…

"You're forgiven," she finished, sealing the promise with a nuzzle to my cheek. It was then that we heard the scream.

****

~X~

"Sierra! Sierra! Where are y--_YIKES!"_ I skidded to a halt as I rounded the corner, apparently about to run into Sierra… with Blues. Blushing profusely for interrupting their "moment" (for they rarely had one) I backed off, scratching my head in embarrassment.

"X?" Sierra blurted out, still in Blues's arms. "What was that? Is everything all right?"

It then hit me like a shock to the circuits; now I remembered why I'd come! "Yeah! About that… I mean… you have to come back to the lab with me! He woke up!"

She tensed, eyes widening. "That's not possible."

I shook my head, understanding but all at once acknowledging that which she so firmly denied. "I know…"

"So what was the scream, then? Affect of Cain's drinking spell?" Blues piped up, earning an elbow in the gut from Sierra. I had to laugh at them, reveling in the slight relief, but my composure quickly returned. "No, it was Zero all right. He just suddenly opened his eyes and calmly sat up as if nothing had happened… Then he took one look at me and froze in place! He said something like 'Rock,' and began screaming and shorting out…"

"Dammit," she mumbled, "Tell Cain I'm on my way."

"Gotcha." Nodding once, I scurried back down the way I'd traveled with renewed swiftness. Something troublesome was afoot, and I feared it was only the beginning.

****

~Sierra~

"What the hell's going on?" Blues grumbled. I looked at him with a grave stare before returning my gaze to X's retreating silhouette.

"I intend to find out."

He gazed at me though the near-opaque visor of his helmet, the concern easily sensed. "Are you okay with this?"

"No, but even so you wouldn't set one foot inside that lab."

Silence.

"You still blame yourself, don't you?"

He growled audibly, low and deeply in his throat as he loosened his hold on me. "Why shouldn't I? I could've saved him, but failed. Not only did I take him away from you, force you to sever your ties with him… I couldn't help you, either."

I understood, and though it would pain him to hear me say so, I too was at fault. I was so weak then, I remember clearly… always in everyone's way, making situations worse with my childlike foolishness; I was worthless an expendable, though an important pawn in the war between my grandfather and Dr. Wily.

"So I'm to face him alone?"

"I don't know if I can face him," he replied, almost coldly.

A smile tried to trace its way over my lips, but it refused to glue itself into place. "I'll go then."

"Who said to leave me out?" Turning back to face him, I noticed he too was attempting to grin. How I longed to see his beautiful eyes as they were, and not hidden behind the helmet I myself had designed. For so long he'd kept to himself, staying within shadows as it suited his fancy. I knew, however, that he would always watch over us all, and knowledge of this always filled me with a warm and secure feeling. Though it hurt to see such moodiness within his impressionable heart, I treasured every smile, every touch… for they were so rare these days.

I peered into that damnable visor teasingly, and he smirked with amusement at my little game. My human hand reached around to push a hidden button on one side of his helmet, and his mask rose to reveal those stormy green orbs that would tell of his love for me soundlessly and without any words. I knew.

"That's better… you ready now?"

He nodded, giving me a chaste kiss before following me back to the lab, where everyone was waiting.

"Will you be all right, Sierra?"

Uncomfortable silence was all the response Blues needed; he grasped my hand and squeezed it reassuringly.

"I'll always be here," he murmured just as the door slid open. X turned towards us, an uneasy and bashful smile alighting his boyish features; Cain remained, to my annoyance, in his semi-coherent state of inebriation. As for Zero… he was currently deactivated, still frozen into his half-raised position on the metal examination table.

_Zero…_ I wanted to flee again, but Blues had anticipated this and steadfastly stood guard at my back. Cain, of course, remained entirely oblivious to this emotional exchange, or so he seemed, by the way a twisted smile was stupidly thrown in my direction. "Shall we re-animate him?"

"Go ahead," I croaked, heart fluttering wildly, and steeling myself for whatever would happen next. Cain began to punch and flip a series of intricate switches -- his efficiency amazed me despite his drunkenness -- and a loud whirring sound filled our ears. Unconsciously I placed my hand over one ear, but jumped suddenly as one finger brushed the metal plates over my face…

Watching through a thick veil of emotion that misted my blue eyes, Zero's emerald ones slowly… oh so slowly… opened and widened. In a seemingly dreamlike state he raised a hand to his face, then his helmet. Sitting up, his gaze met mine with unexpected clarity, and I shrank back in fear beneath his scrutiny.

"Am I dreaming?"

My heart broke at these words, though by some hidden resolve I was able to choke back my bitter tears and shake my head.

"Sierra… but you're dead…" Zero abruptly stood, and I saw that he did not stifle his own coursing emotion, for twin rivulets ran down his dirtied cheeks and spilled down to the floor with light pattering sounds. Fluidly, and with the catlike grace I remembered so well, he moved towards me; a wave of self-consciousness washed over my mind, causing me to panic and back up a step.

"Don't look at me…"

"Sierra…" One gloved hand reached out as if to touch me, but stopped an inch away from my face as if the metal would burn it. "Gods… what happened to you, my love?"

I sensed Blues shifting behind me, and in a single motion he had moved between Zero and myself protectively. The red reploid registered his identity almost immediately, and in a swirling maelstrom of joy and amazement he cried out, "Brother!"

"Yes Zero," he replied with painfully clipped tones, "We're both alive, thanks to Dr. Light… and X, whom you've met already."

Zero either couldn't or refused to respond, running a hand through his golden ponytail in his nervous habit as his eyes fixed onto our blue companion. I knew instantly what he was thinking… for X indeed resembled a long-gone friend…

"Do you remember what happened?" Blues continued, diverting his attention once more. I glanced at him quizzically, curious as to his swift chase to the point… but the robot regarded us all in silence, bowing his head with shame in his heart.

"I think I was dreaming," he mumbled almost to himself. "I awakened, surrounded by a bunch of junk bots led by a creep named Colonel, who tried to shove me back into the capsule… It made me angry, so furious that everything after that is a blur… I don't know what I've done. There're flashes in my memory banks of a tall 'bot wielding a sabre similar to mine, and I messed him up pretty badly. I lost all control, nearly killing him… but that can't have happened, right? Right?" Both hands at this point were clenched into tight fists, as if the pain of nails driving into his mechanical palms would drive away the horrible images.

It was Cain who spoke in response, much to our exasperation. "Well son, it's all very true, I'm sorry to say…"

"_What?"_ Zero's head snapped up, and the doctor nodded grimly.

"You placed that reploid under emergency intensive care… we're still not sure if he'll survive the extensive repairs. You really did a number on him, but don't worry, it wasn't wholly your fault. You see, you are infected with something we call the _Maverick Virus, _which causes the internal systems of a bio-mechanical life form to lose control of themselves. Thus, they attack everything in plain sight until their bodies fall apart.

"The curious thing is, my friend… Zero was it?… is that the virus has so far disappeared from your systems completely!"

It was my turn to jerk in surprise. "Say that again?"

Cain sighed deeply. "I've told you all I know, Sierra dear. It was on my scanners, then suddenly vanished without a trace a few seconds before he woke himself up. It's rather curious…"

"Wait a second," Zero intervened with a raised hand, his gaze painfully grave. "You mean to tell me that I still have the very virus in my body that has caused my loved ones so much pain… and it's caused me to _kill everyone I saw in my nightmare?!_" He was shaking uncontrollably, agonizing convulsions of horror overtaking his senses.

Nobody moved. Nobody dared.

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I've bore with

Things I've already seen too much, somehow…

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Author's Notes: More to come very soon! And just a note; the more reviews I get, the faster I write ^_^ Expect an update on _Souldance_ as well in the next couple of days.

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Next chapter: _Prelude to Darkness --_ The truth of the lost past is revealed to Zero as the shadow of new enemies looms overhead. When a powerful Hunter turns renegade under the influence of the Maverick virus, will HQ hold together?


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